Palmer to head up new Schwartz energy title

Schwartz Media, publisher of The Monthly and The Saturday Paper, is to launch a new title covering energy policy, which will be headed up by Charis Palmer, formerly of The Conversation, Business Spectator, and iTNews.

Palmer finished up with The Conversation recently, where she was Deputy Editor, Chief of Staff, and Head of Digital Strategy. She's now taken on the job of launching the new energy-sector title for Schwartz.

The publication, which has yet to be formally announced, joins the stable of titles backed by entrepreneur Morry Schwartz, which includes Black Inc Books, the Quarterly Essay, Australian Foreign Affairs (Schwartz Publishing), The Monthly, and The Saturday Paper (Schwartz Media), and La Trobe University Press.

It won’t be the first launch effort for Palmer, who previously ran her own B2B publishing and events business, Banking Review Media, which included a subscription publication widely adopted by the retail banking sector.

She was also the founding editor of Technology Spectator, a Business Spectator spin-off that focused on enterprise technology.

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Grant Broadcasters buys Hot Tomato

Independent FM station 102.9 Hot Tomato has been acquired by Grant Broadcasters.

Grant Broadcasters management announced in a staff email today that both companies have completed their due diligence with the sale to be made official on November 30, 2018. The final sale price was not disclosed.

In discussing the sale, Hot Tomato executive chairman Hans Torv said the station needed a company that can further develop the business, following several buyout offers in the past. He noted that Grant’s dedication to the radio industry will fit well with Hot Tomato’s crew.

“We are thrilled to welcome Hot Tomato to the Grant Broadcasters family. The station’s ethos of live and local fits firmly into the values of our company and our other local radio stations. The Hot Tomato team has done an outstanding job in being the leading voice of the local community on the Gold Coast,” added Grant Broadcasters CEO Alison Cameron.

Fairfax-Nine merger gets shareholders’ blessing

Shareholders of Fairfax Media have consented to the company’s merger with Nine.

The general meeting held today at the Domain offices saw the merger being approved at 81.49 per cent in favour against 18.5 per cent opposing votes. The motion sends the merger proposal for Federal Court review, with the ruling out next week. If the court approves the merger, the unified company called Nine will start operations on December 10, 2018.

“The company is entering the next phase in its more than century-long development. Our businesses and our journalism are well-positioned to continue to be the most compelling voices for the years ahead. The combined group’s increased scale of audiences and marketing platforms will drive value creation and deliver long-term benefits to shareholders,” said Fairfax CEO Greg Hywood after the vote.

The vote pushed ahead despite an offer from former Domain CEO Anthony Catalano, who sought to buy 19.9 per cent of Fairfax shares and sell non-

White magazine closes

Publishers Luke and Carla Burrell wrote in an official blog post over the weekend that they could no longer continue the business because of the backlash over not featuring same-sex couples on the pages.

The publication had received enquiries from readers on the topic of same-sex marriages since last year’s plebiscite and subsequent legalisation.

The Burrells pointed out that a campaign against White earlier this year was damaging to the point that they lost advertisers and the staff was harassed. Couples featured in the magazine were also targeted online for harassment.

White has been in operation since starting out in the Hunter Valley back in 2006.

NZ’s Mediaworks fuses RadioLIVE and Magic

New Zealand company Mediaworks is joining together RadioLIVE and the Magic network as a brand new entity called Magic Talk.

Mediaworks CEO Michael Anderson said in a staff email that the change is expected to take place in early 2019. The new station will combine music radio and talk shows.

Under the blueprint, current programs Rural Exchange show and The AM Show will stay on-air and the nightly Newshub broadcast will continue. The fate of other shows on both RadioLIVE and Magic are yet to be determined.

The Deal profiles female leaders

The Australian has unveiled out a special women’s-only edition of business annual The Deal.

Covering various articles on female business leaders, The Deal’s special edition is also a collaboration with Chief Executive Women, as NewsCorp Australia is a contributor to the organisation’s scholarship programme.

The magazine’s headline articles include a piece by Caroline Overington about top female executives and whether they must also aid other women succeed, and Vogue Australia editorial director Edwina McCann’s discourse on proper workplace attire.

“Women have achieved so much, even if there is more to do, and there is a great appetite among young women to hear the stories of the trailblazers and to really understand their journeys. The emerging women leaders we aim to reach with this issue would be astonished to know how workplaces operated decades ago,” said The Deal editor Helen Trinca.

Momentum Media launches aerospace website Space Connect

Momentum Media has unveiled its new Space Connect content platform, designed for Australia’s aerospace industry.

Touted as a centre for news and information about the commercialisation of space, SpaceConnect is also being pitched as a portal for possible career opportunities in the space industry.

Momentum Media director for defence and space Phillip Tarrant said the company’s success with publication Defence Connect in networking with the Defence Department and local contractors prompted the development of a similar brand for space matters.

The establishment of the Australian Space Agency and booming aerospace industry also contributed to building the case for such a website.

Tarrant assured that the ASA, telcos, CSIRO, the Department of Industry, Innovation and Science, and other government agencies with space-related operations, among others, will be covered.

Henderson earns Men’s Health editorship

By
Jonas Lopez
in
Media News
on
Thursday, 15th November 2018 at 1:53pm

Scott Henderson has been appointed editor and content director of Men’s Health Australia, effective 19 November 2018.

Pacific Magazines CEO Gereurd Roberts said Henderson had proven himself an asset to the publication, with his one-year run as associate digital editor marked by increased audience numbers for Men’s Health Australia. He had also exhibited a drive to build up the brand, Roberts added.

“I’m looking forward to exploring new opportunities for the brand at a time when health is more important to Australians than ever – not just physical health, but mental health, emotional health and beyond. We’ll be finding new ways to engage Aussie men, educating and inspiring them, and making good health accessible to all of them,” said Henderson.